System for the radio transmission of real-time airline flight information

ABSTRACT

A flight delivery system that utilizes an architectural structure and network that allows real-time digital signals to be stored, retrieved and converted to an audio signal for radio transmission to achieve nearly instantaneous transmission of real-time data. The system utilizes a computerized reservation system as a source of information and stores it on a database. The information is called up by a computer that converts the data to a digital audio signal. The digital audio signal is then broadcast over airport antennae. The system features programs that allow for a conversion from airport city codes to the common identification for local cities.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an improved information delivery systemand, more specifically, to an architecture and network that allows realtime digital signals to be stored, retrieved and converted to an audiosignal for radio transmission to achieve the nearly instantaneoustransmission of real-time data.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Without limiting the scope of the invention, the present inventionrelates to a network for gathering data and translating the data into auser-friendly format for transmission over a user-friendly medium. Insuch networks, emphasis is heavily placed on the accuracy of theinformation, the timeliness in the delivery of the information and themode of the delivery of the information.

In the field pertaining to this invention, the transmitted data isairline flight arrival and departure information. In the history ofscheduled passenger air transportation, it has always been a goal to getflight arrival and departure information to the public in as anefficient method as possible. In the beginning days of scheduledpassenger flight, this information was generally delivered by voice andwritten word. Passengers would call or, if at the airport, ask an agentof the airline the time of departure or arrival of a particular flight.The information would be available either by the spoken word or a signlocated within the confines of an airport.

Since that time and continuing to today, the passenger still gets theinformation the same way. Through the spoken word or through the writtenword. What has changed tremendously is the way the information isgathered and distributed. In the early days, the scheduling informationwas set by the airline and then distributed in schedule books.

This prior system did not address scheduling changes that occurred afterthe schedule book was printed. Changes could occur for any number ofreasons, including delays due to weather, mechanical problems or becauseof changes in an airline's overall flight system.

The passengers would not be made aware of these changes until theyentered the airport. The duty to inform the passengers fell to the agentat the airport. Overall, the prior manual system was a very inefficientsystem.

As time went on, technology began to introduce changes in the wayinformation was gathered and distributed. With the advent of theSemi-Automated Business Research Environment (SABRE), airlines began tohave a tool at their disposal that allowed them to gather informationmore efficiently. Today, SABRE, a computerized reservation service(CRS), and other CRS', such as Covia, Worldspan and Apollo, collect anddisburse information regarding not only passenger reservationinformation but also flight information. These CRS' enable informationto be more timely disbursed over a wide geographic area almostinstantaneously. Today that geographic area includes the entire world.

Today's methods of conveying the scheduled flight information topassengers, include automated telephone flight information services,e-mail, facsimile, use of television screens at airports along withpublic address systems at individual gates. There are video monitorsplaced inside the airport structures. Airports also have public addresssystems that are used to announce the most timely of information, flightcancellations, gate changes, explanations for other nonscheduled events.Large signs have been erected at some airports that provide flightinformation to people entering the airports. These signs have diminishedvalue during inclement weather because visibility is poor, making itdifficult for the visiting airport person to read.

Accordingly, today there are various overlays of ways flight informationis delivered to the airport visitor.

In the case of various large airports where there may be more than oneairport terminal, an improved system for providing flight informationprior to entering the airport facilities is needed.

The instant invention gathers flight information from a variety ofsources, both human and computer, and converts it to a user-friendlyaudio signal, then transmits it to the airport visitor's automobile viaradio frequencies for reception in the airport visitor's automobile. Inthis way, real-time information is delivered timely, accurately and in auser-friendly medium. Radio reception is not affected by weatherconditions except in the most extreme of conditions. Therefore, theairport visitor has the information needed to determine where they needto go to either take or meet a flight. The radio signal is strong enoughthat it will reach the airport visitor's automobile prior to arriving atthe airport in most instances, further providing ease of use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is an improved flight information collection anddelivery system that provides real-time information in a user-friendlyformat. The invention offers the advantage of delivering real-timeinformation to the airport visitor prior to entering the airportterminal in a way that is timely, accurate and largely independent ofenvironmental factors.

It is a primary advantage of the present invention to provide real-timeflight information to airport visitors. This is accomplished byconnecting input from a variety of sources to a virtual network. Asinformation is gathered about a specific flight, it is fed through anetwork to a computerized network. The information may include expectedtime of arrival, departure times, flight number, gate information, etc.The computer network is a computerized reservation system (CRS). Theflight information is gathered by the CRS as part of its normaloperations. It is converted into a computer language that allows it tobe processed by the computer and then used to do a variety of functions,including scheduling flights, assigning crews, keeping updatedinformation on weather, etc.

The present invention takes this raw data in its computer language formand retrieves arrival and departure information. It should be noted thatthis information is the most current and comprehensive information thatcan be obtained about a particular flight. This information is takenfrom the CRS and stored on a file server. A personal computer, p.c.,then accesses the file server on a periodic basis. It takes theinformation, retrieves and transmits it to a second p.c. that convertsthe computer language into a form that permits audio reception onradios. The signal is broadcast via a radio transmitter to the airportvisitor. In this way, the airport visitor receives the most currentinformation in a convenient and timely manner.

Another advantage of this invention is that the system will rebootitself, without human intervention and the reboot will be virtuallyinvisible to the ultimate user. By utilizing a particular memorylocation and placing a bit where one was not before, the system willautomatically recognize when the bit is missing. The bite will bemissing when the system is not receiving information from the datastorage on the file server. Monitoring the location is a backgroundtask. The background task will read that that location is empty andforce a hard reading.

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, includingits features and advantages, reference is now made to the followingdetailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a high level block diagram of a network according to oneaspect of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a high level block diagram of the equipment that receives thedata through to the transmission; and

FIG. 3 is a high level block flow chart of the steps the systemundertakes to present the information.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In the following detailed description, a user shall mean and encompass asingle user, a plurality of users or anyone of a plurality of users. Theword “user” shall be used to mean anyone using an airport facility.Also, a node shall be understood to mean an entry point into a network,a network element, server or other designated point of access. Othersimilar connotations shall be obvious to those skilled in the art uponreference to this disclosure.

In FIG. 1, the flight information network is shown and generally denotedas 5. Flight information network 5 is a network connected to a varietyof flight information sources. The information enters through variousnodes. The nodes consist of output monitors 10, printers 15,computerized reservation system (CRS) 20, and a file server 25 having adatabase 30. The output monitors 10 are used to output informationregarding flight arrivals and departures at various locations fromaround the world. The flight information is sent to CRS 20 from varioussources where it is stored and then transmitted out to the nodes. Thisinformation is received at an airport local area network LAN 35.

The information stored in the CRS 20 is delivered to the airport LAN 35where it is then disbursed to various nodes. These nodes may include themonitors 10, the printers 15 and other output devices.

The present invention is a part of, and accesses, the LAN 35 to retrievethe information it needs to broadcast to the airport visitor. Aspreviously mentioned, the LAN 35 also has a database 30 as part of afile server 25. The database 30 also captures the flight informationreceived from the CRS 20 and culls it out from the other information.The information is held here until it is called up by personal computer45. It is the role of personal computer 45 to receive flight informationfrom the file server 25. Personal computer 45 takes the informationretrieved from the file server 25 and converts it to an audio wave file.In the present invention, this is a typical audio wave file as developedby Microsoft. In this process, the soundblaster is initialized. The coreof this function is called playwave. It first initializes thesoundblaster. Then in the next step it allocates memory to receive theheader information. It checks to make sure the digital signal processoris present and functioning properly. The playwave function calls allsubsequent functions to the header file to read the wave. The timingloop is also set during this time. The time is set in the file server 25from input from the CRS 20.

In FIG. 2, a high level block diagram of the equipment that receives thedata is shown. Personal computer 45 is configured with a digital signalprocessor, DSP, which is 100% soundblaster compatible 16, version 4.0 orgreater, with a 16 bit DMA access. Such a DSP is manufactured byCreative Labs. It is available royalty free over the Internet and needsslight customization for use with the invention. The necessarymodifications are obvious to one skilled in the art.

The database 30 has a spelling disk 50 associated with it. Each airporthas a separate and distinct city code associated with it. For example,the airport located between Dallas and Fort Worth is identified by thecity code DFW. The city code of the airport at Fresno is FAT. The citycode for Chicago's O'HARE field is ORD. Accordingly, one of the thingsthe program must do is to translate the airport name from the city codeinto an audio wave file the name of the city that is recognizable to theuser.

To do this a spelling disk 50 is associated with the local personalcomputer 45. The spelling disk uses a routine that automaticallytranslates from city code to user language. A separate routine isrequired for this because the system needs to be able to differentiatebetween similar city names. For example, when the city San Jose ismentioned, one needs to know if this is San Jose, Calif. or San Jose,Costa Rica. Another example would be Monterrey, Calif. and Monterrey,Nuevo Leon, Mexico.

The same logistics encountered with the real time automated voiceresponse system for flight information occurs here with this system. Aperson having ordinary skill in the art would be familiar with the worknecessary to handle all the nuances that are associated with changingcity codes to audible city names. Listed below is the table that is usedto convert city code to audible city names.

-   ABE Allentown-Bethlehem-   ABI Abilene-   ABQ Albuquerque-   ACA Acapulco-   ACK Nantucket, Mass.-   ACT Waco-   ACV Eureka Arcata Calif.-   AEX Alexandria La.-   AFW Alliance-Afw-   AGP Malaga-   AKL Auckland, New Zealand-   ALB Albany-   ALO Waterloo-   AMA Amarillo-   ANC Anchorage-   ANU Antigua-   APF Naples Fla.-   ARN Stockholm-   ASE Aspen-   ASU Asuncion-   ATL Atlanta-   AUA Aruba-   AUH Abu Dhabi-   AUS Austin-   AVL Asheville-   AXA Anguilla-   AZO Kalamazoo-   BAH Bahrain, Bahrain-   BAQ Barranquilla-   BDA Bermuda-   BDL Hartford-Springfield-   BFL Bakersfield-   BGI Barbados-   BHM Birmingham Ala.-   BHX Birmingham UK-   BJX Leon Mexico-   BMI Bloomington Ill.-   BNA Nashville-   BOG Bogota, Colombia-   BOI Boise, Idaho-   BOS Boston-   BPT Beaumont-Port Arthur-   BQK Brunswick Ga.-   BQN Aguadilla PR-   BRL Burlington Iowa-   BRU Brussels, Belgium-   BTR Baton Rouge-   BUD Budapest, Hungary-   BUF Buffalo-   BUR Burbank-   BWI Baltimore-Washington-   BZE Belize City, Belize-   CAE Columbia S.C.-   CAK Akron-Canton-   CCS Caracas-   CGH Sao Paulo, Brazil-   CHA Chattanooga-   CHS Charleston S.C.-   CIC Chico CA-   CID Cedar Rapids-Iowa City-   CKB Clarksburg W.Va.-   CLD Carlsbad Calif.-   CLE Cleveland-   CLL College Station-   CLO Cali, Colombia-   CLT Charlotte N.C.-   CMH Columbus Ohio-   CMI Champaign-Urbana-   CNF Belo Horizonte Brazil-   COS Colorado Springs-   CPT Cape Town-   CRP Corpus Christi-   CSG Columbus Ga.-   CUN Cancun-   CUR Curacao, Netherland Anti-   CUU Chihuahua, Mexico-   CVG Cincinnati-   CWA Wausau-Stevens Pt-   CZM Cozumel-   DAB Daytona Beach-   DAY Dayton-   DBQ Dubuque-   DCA Washington-National-   DEC Decatur Ill.-   DEN Denver-   DFW Dallas-Ft Worth-   DOH Doha, Qatar-   DOM Dominica-   DRO Durango Colorado-   DSM Des Moines-   DTW Detroit-   DUS Dusseldorf-   EGE Vail Colo.-   EIS Tortola Beef Island-   ELP El Paso-   ESF Alexandria-   EUG Eugene Oreg.-   EVV Evansville Ind.-   EWN New Bem N.C.-   EWR Newark-   EYW Key West-   EZE Buenos Aires, Argentina-   FAI Fairbanks-   FAR Fargo-   FAT Fresno-   FAY Fayetteville N.C.-   FDF Fort De France-   FLL Ft Lauderdale-   FLO Florence S.C.-   FMN Farmington N.Mex.-   FMY Fort Myers-   FNT Flint-   FPO Freeport, Bahamas-   FRA Frankfurt, Germany-   FSD Sioux Falls-   FSM Ft Smith-   FTW Fort Worth-   FWA Ft Wayne-   FYV Fayetteville Ark.-   GCM Grand Cayman-   GDL Guadalajara, Mexico-   GEO Georgetown, Guyana-   GGG Longview-Kilgore-   GGT George Town-   GHB Governors Hrbr-   GIG Rio De Janeiro-   GLA Glasgow UK-   GLS Galveston, Tex.-   GND Grenada-   GPT Gulfport Biloxi-   GRB Green Bay-   GRR Grand Rapids-   GRU Sao Paulo, Brazil-   GSO Greensboro-   GSP Greenville-Spartanburg-   GSW Ft.worth-Great Southwest-   GTR Columbus-Starkville-   GUA Guatemala City-   GUC Gunnison-   GYE Guayaquil, Ecuador-   HDN Steamboat Springs-   HDQ Test City-   HEL Helsinki, Finland-   HHH Hilton Head-   HKY Hickory N.C.-   HNL Honolulu-   HOU Houston-Hobby-   HPN Westchester Cty-   HRL Harlingen-   HSV Huntsville-   HUF Terre Haute-   HUX Huatulco MX-   IAD Washington-Dulles-   IAH Houston Intercontinental-   ICT Wichita-   IDA Idaho Falls-   IFP Laughlin-Bullhead City-   ILE Killeen-   ILM Wilmington N.C.-   IND Indianapolis-   INT Winston-Salem-   ISP Long Island MacArthur-   IYK Inyoke Calif.-   JAC Jackson Hole-   JAN Jackson Miss.-   JAX Jacksonville-   JFK New York-JFK-   JNB Johannesburg-   JXN Jackson Mich.-   KIN Kingston, Jamaica-   LAF Lafayette Ind.-   LAN Lansing-   LAS Las Vegas-   LAW Lawton-   LAX Los Angeles-   LBB Lubbock-   LCH Lake Charles-   LEX Lexington-   LFT Lafayette La.-   LGA New York-LGA-   LGB Long Beach-   LGW London-LGW-   LHR London-LHR-   LIM Lima, Peru-   LIT Little Rock-   LMT Klamath Falls-   LPB La Paz, Bolivia-   LRD Laredo-   LRM Casa De Campo-LRM-   LSE Lacrosse-Winona-   LYH Lynchburga VA-   MAD Madrid, Spain-   MAF Midland-Odessa-   MAN Manchester UK-   MAR Maracaibo-   MAZ Mayaguez, PR-   MBJ Montego Bay, Jamaica-   MBS Saginaw-   MCE Merced Calif.-   MCI Kansas City-   MCO Orlando-   MCT Muscat Oman-   MDT Harrisburg-   MDW Chicago-Midway-   MEI Meridian Miss.-   MEL Melbourne, Australia-   MEM Memphis-   MEX Mexico City-   MFE McAllen-   MFR Medford Oreg.-   MGA Managua, Nicaragua-   MGM Montgomery-   MHH Marsh Harbor, Bahamas-   MIA Miami-   MIE Muncie-   MKE Milwaukee-   MKG Muskegon Mich.-   MLB Melboume Fla.-   MLI Moline Ill.-   MLU Monroe-   MOB Mobile-   MOD Modesto Calif.-   MQT Marquette-   MRY Monterey Calif.-   MSN Madison Wis.-   MSP Minneapolis-St Paul-   MSY New Orleans-   MTH Marathon Fla.-   MTY Monterrey, Mexico-   MUC Munich, Germany-   MVD Montevideo, Uruguay-   MWX Mosstown Bahamas-   MXP Milan, Italy-   MYR Myrtle Beach-   NAP Naples Fla.-   NAS Nassau, Bahamas-   NRT Tokyo-Narita-   OAJ Jacksonville N.C.-   OAK Oakland-   OGG Kahului Maui-   OKC Oklahoma City-   OMA Omaha-   ONT Ontario Calif.-   ORD Chicago-   ORF Norfolk-   ORY Paris, France-   OWB Owensboro Ky.-   OXR Oxnard-   PAH Paducah Ky.-   PAP Port Au Prince-   PBI West Palm Beach-   PDX Portland Oreg.-   PGV Greenville N.C.-   PHF Newport News-   PHL Philadelphia-   PHX Phoenix-   PIA Peoria-   PIE St Petersburg-   PIT Pittsburgh-   PLS Providenciales, Turks-   PNS Pensacola-   POP Puerto Plata, DR-   POS Port Of Spain, Trinidad-   POU Poughkeepsie-   PRX Paris, Tex.-   PSE Ponce, Pr-   PSP Palm Springs-   PTP Pointe A Pitre-   PTY Panama City-   PUJ Punta Cana, Dr-   PVD Providence-   PVR Puerto Vallarta-   RDD Redding-   RDM Redmond Oreg.-   RDU Raleigh-Durham-   RFD Rockford Ill.-   RIC Richmond-   RNO Reno-   ROA Roanoke-   ROC Rochester N.Y.-   RST Rochester Minn.-   RSW Fort Myers-   SAL San Salvador-   SAN San Diego-   SAP San Pedro Sula-   SAT San Antonio-   SAV Savannah-   SBA Santa Barbara-   SBN South Bend-   SBP San Luis Obispo-   SCC Deadhorse-Prudhoe Bay Ak.-   SCK Stockton CA-   SCL Santiago, Chile-   SCQ Sntiago D Cmpst-   SDF Louisville-   SDQ Santo Domingo-   SEA Seattle-Tacoma-   SEL Seoul, Korea-   SFB Sanford Fla.-   SFO San Francisco-   SGF Springfield Mo.-   SHV Shreveport-   SID Cape Verde Is-   SIN Singapore-   SJC San Jose, Calif.-   SJD Los Cabos-   SJO San Jose, Costa Rica-   SJT San Angelo-   SJU San Juan-   SKB St Kitts-   SLC Salt Lake City-   SLU St Lucia-   SMF Sacramento-   SMX Santa Maria-   SNA Orange County-   SPI Springfield Ill.-   SPS Wichita Falls-   SRQ Sarasota-   STL St Louis-   STS Santa Rosa, Calif.-   STT St Thomas, USVI-   STX St Croix, USVI-   SUX Sioux City Iowa-   SVD St Vincent-   SVO Moscow, Russia-   SWF Newburgh Stewart-   SXM St Maarten-   SYD Sydney, Australia-   SYR Syracuse-   TAM Tampico-   TCB Treasure Cay-   TCL Tuscaloosa-   TFS Tenerife-   TGU Tegucigalpa-   TLH Tallahassee Fla.-   TOL Toledo-   TPA Tampa-   TPL Temple Tex.-   TSS MidtownManhattan-   TUL Tulsa-   TUS Tucson-   TVC Traverse City-   TXK Texarkana-   TXL Berlin-   TYR Tyler-   TYS Knoxville-   UIO Quito, Ecuador-   UVF St Lucia-   VIJ Virgin Gorda-   VIS Visalia-   VLN Valencia-   VPS Ft Walton Beach-   VRB Vero Beach, Fla.-   WI Santa Cruz, Bolivia-   WAW Warsaw-   YEG Edmonton-   YHM Hamilton, Canada-   YHZ Halifax-   YOW Ottawa-   YQB Quebec City-   VPS Ft Walton Beach-   VRB Vero Beach, Fla.-   WI Santa Cruz, Bolivia-   WAW Warsaw-   YEG Edmonton-   YHM Hamilton, Canada-   YHZ Halifax-   YOW Ottawa-   YQB Quebec City-   YUL Montreal-   YVR Vancouver BC-   YWG Winnipeg MB-   YYC Calgary-   YYZ Toronto-   ZIH Zihuatanejo-   ZRH Zurich, Switzerland-   ZRK Rockford Ill.-   ZSA San Salvador BH

The CRS 20 retrieves, stores and dispatches information about everymatter concerning a flight. This information includes all take offs andlandings. They are reported through the CRS 20 and then the informationis dispensed throughout the system. The flight information is retrievedand stored into a database 30. This information is, in turn, be calledup for use by the file server 25 in response to periodic requests frompersonal computer 45.

Because a large amount of information is received from the CRS 20, otherinformation above and beyond arrival and departure times may also beretrieved. These enhancements would include other airline information.For example, the present invention may be used to identify not only theflight arrival time, but also the airline for which the craft is flying.

In another embodiment the present invention may have a continuous loopthat periodically repeats the identity of the airline for whom theflight information is being provided.

All of this information is fed into the personal computer 45 where, asstated previously, a wave file is called up to translate the informationfrom machine language into a user-friendly format.

From the personal computer 45, the information is transmitted to anaudio plug 55 The audio plug 55 goes directly to a regular telephonecircuit 60. The audio plug connects personal computer 45 with theairport network. The circuit may be a dedicated line or part of avertical network. In the preferred embodiment, it is a part of adedicated line.

The telephone circuit goes out to an airport LAN 63 shown at FIG. 2. Theairport LAN 63 includes a radio transmitter 65 located at the airport.In the preferred embodiment the radio transmitter is a 60 watttransmitter with a broadcast radius of 10 miles. The broadcast isreceived on a user's radio and the user then audibly hears pertinentinformation regarding flight arrival and departure.

FIG. 3 is a high level flow chart showing the steps of the softwareprogram. In general, the program first loads the software configuration.Then it looks for and connects to the network. From the network, thesoftware locates the file server and transfers flight information intohalf of a buffer. At the same time, it initializes the soundblaster andwave files and DMA. Next, it sets up the wave file and DSP. Theinformation is then converted to an audio format and then sent to theairport LAN 63 to be sent to an equalizer 70. From the equalizer 70, theinformation is sent to a transmitter 65 and from there out throughairport antennaes 75.

A copy of the source code follows. It is an embodiment of the inventionbut the invention should not be limited to this code. It is provided asan example.

1-10. (canceled)
 11. A computer-readable medium containing instructionsfor controlling a data processing system to perform a method for audibleannouncement generation, the method comprising the steps of: a) storingflight information in a signal conversion database; b) retrieving flightinformation from the signal conversion database; c) sorting retrievedflight information into a desired sequence; d) differentiating differentcity codes in the flight information; e) radio broadcasting the flightinformation in the desired sequence; f) radio broadcasting standardizedopening messages; g) determining an end program sequence terminationrequest; and h) verifying that the flight information is current beforestoring the flight information in the signal conversion database. 12.The computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein determining an endprogram sequence termination request comprises: determining whether adesignated key has been depressed; and terminating performance of themethod based on a determination that the designated key has beendepressed.
 13. The computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein thesteps of verifying that the flight information is current comprises thesubsteps of: determining whether flight information has been receivedfrom a flight information file server within a predetermined period oftime; establishing communications with the flight information fileserver based on a determination that flight information has not beenreceived within a predetermined period of time; and performing steps a)through g).
 14. The computer-readable medium of claim 11 furthercomprising the step of retrieving the flight information from acomputerized reservation system and said storing step comprises storingthe flight information in the signal conversion database.
 15. Thecomputer-readable medium of claim 14 further comprising the step ofconverting the flight information retrieved by said retrieving step fromthe computerized reservation system into an audio file format.
 16. Thecomputer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein said differentiating stepconverts city codes into city names.
 17. A computer-readable mediumcontaining instructions for controlling a data processing system toperform a method for audible announcement generation, the methodcomprising the steps of: a) receiving flight information from a computerreservation system and storing the flight information in a signalconversion database; b) sorting retrieved flight information into adesired sequence; c) converting the flight information in the signalconversion database into an audio format file such that the data isstored in the desired sequence; c) providing the audio format filecontaining the flight information to an antenna; and d) radiobroadcasting the flight information in the audio format file in thedesired sequence.
 18. The computer-readable medium of claim 17, whereinsaid converting step comprises sorting retrieved flight information intoa desired sequence and radio broadcasting step comprises radiobroadcasting the flight information in the desired sequence.
 19. Thecomputer-readable medium of claim 17, wherein said radio broadcastingstep comprises: radio broadcasting the flight information in the desiredsequence; radio broadcasting standardized opening messages; anddetermining an end program sequence termination request.
 20. Thecomputer-readable medium of claim 17 further comprising: verifying thatthe flight information is current before storing the flight informationin the signal conversion database.
 21. The computer-readable medium ofclaim 19, wherein determining an end program sequence terminationrequest comprises: determining whether a designated key has beendepressed; and terminating performance of the method based on adetermination that the designated key has been depressed.
 22. Thecomputer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the steps of verifyingthat the flight information is current comprises the substeps of:determining whether flight information has been received from a flightinformation file server within a predetermined period of time; andestablishing communications with the flight information file serverbased on a determination that flight information has not been receivedwithin a predetermined period of time.
 23. The computer-readable mediumof claim 17 further comprising the step of retrieving the flightinformation from a computerized reservation system and storing theflight information in the signal conversion database.
 24. Thecomputer-readable medium of claim 17 further comprising the step ofdifferentiating different city codes in the flight information.
 25. Thecomputer-readable medium of claim 24, wherein said differentiating stepconverts city codes into city names.
 26. A computer-readable mediumcontaining instructions for controlling a data processing system toperform a method for audible announcement generation, the methodcomprising the steps of: a) receiving flight information from a computerreservation system and storing the flight information in a signalconversion database; b) differentiating different city codes in theflight information; c) converting the flight information in the signalconversion database into an audio format; e) providing the audio formatfile containing the flight information to an antenna; and f) radiobroadcasting the flight information in the audio format file.
 27. Thecomputer-readable medium of claim 26, wherein said converting stepcomprises sorting retrieved flight information into a desired sequenceand radio broadcasting step comprises radio broadcasting the flightinformation in the desired sequence.
 28. The computer-readable medium ofclaim 26, wherein said radio broadcasting step comprises: radiobroadcasting the flight information in the desired sequence; radiobroadcasting standardized opening messages; and determining an endprogram sequence termination request.
 29. The computer-readable mediumof claim 26, wherein said differentiating step converts city codes intocity names.